The View From Bonnaroo

By Ray Waddell

About 60 miles south of Nashville the fifth annual Bonnaroo is emerging from the green fields of Tennessee.

Bonnaroo 2006 is getting ready to showcase its most ambitious lineup yet June 16-18 at its verdant site in Manchester, Tenn.

Born in 2002 as the brainchild of promoters A.C. Entertainment and Superfly Productions, Bonnaroo became a success out of the box by catering to adventurous fans of such popular jam bands as the Grateful Dead, Widespread Panic, Blues Traveler and the Dave Matthews Band.

This year marks a shifting direction for Bonnaroo, with headliners to include Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers, Radiohead, Beck, and Elvis Costello & the Imposters.

Though Bonnaroo's roots are still firmly planted in the jam-band scene, this year's lineup tilts more than ever toward mainstream and indie rock, with bands like My Morning Jacket, Death Cab for Cutie, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, Cat Power, Stephen Malkmus & the Jicks, Matisyahu, Gomez and Bright Eyes booked alongside more traditional jam scene acts like Phil Lesh and Friends, Blues Traveler, Bela Fleck & the Flecktones, Robert Randolph & the Family Band, moe., G. Love & Special Sauce and Medeski Martin & Wood.

Rounding out the lineup are such respected artists as Bonnie Raitt, Buddy Guy, the Neville Brothers, Dr. John, Ricky Skaggs and Kentucky Thunder, Nickel Creek, Shooter Jennings, Steve Earle and Les Claypool. (For a complete schedule, check out Bonnaroo.com).

"From the beginning we've always tried to reflect people's music collections," Superfly president Jonathan Mayers tells Billboard.com. "People have diverse musical tastes and that's what we're trying to showcase with our programming. While we're not trying to get too far away from our core, Bonnaroo has been a great platform to introduce different music to our fans."

Musically, Bonnaroo will certainly have a different vibe in 2006. "Sometimes you get defined by your headliners, but we feel what we booked is a great fit for what Bonnaroo stands for and the artists we want to present," says Mayers. "We're a music festival, not just one particular style of music. We just want to present good music and that's what we're doing. We can't present the same show year after year."

In the days leading up to the festival, the construction of the Bonnaroo "city" out of an empty pasture was said to be going smoothly. "We're definitely right on track with everything," Mayers says. "Each year we kind of fine-tune everything we're doing. The crew has been working together now for five years, we continue to improve each year because we can work out more of the details."

In its brief history, Bonnaroo has become the top-grossing festival in the world. Last year, it took in $13.4 million and drew 76,049 people to its rural setting on 700 acres. Impressive as those figures sound, last year's numbers were down from $14.5 million and 90,000 attendance in 2004.

But rather than just the numbers, Mayers says Bonnaroo is about the experience. "Each year we try to improve and create new activities on-site, more organization and an overall better experience," he says. "The way it's coming together this year, I think it's going to be the best festival to date."

Asked if he had any advice for first-time Bonnaroo attendees, Mayers says, "I encourage people to check out new artists they've never seen before. The great thing about this festival is hopefully you'll get turned on to something new. I personally wouldn't come in with a strict game plane. Go with the flow a little bit and check out some new things."

Also, "Pace yourself. It's a long weekend."